Solution: The main features of the Permanent
Settlement, which was introduced by Lord Cornwallis in 1793, are as follows:

a)The
Rajas and Taluqdars were recognized as Zamindars.

b)They
were agreed to collect rent from the peasants and pay revenue to the Company.

c)The
amount to be paid (revenue) was fixed permanently that it was not to be
increased ever in future. The condition was that the Zamindars had to pay this
revenue rigidly on due date even if the crop had failed for some reason as
otherwise the land were to be sold.

d)It
was felt that this would ensure a regular flow of revenue into the Company’s
coffers and at the same time encourage the Zamindars to invest for improving
the land.

e)Since
the revenue demand of the state would not be increased, the zamindar would
benefit if he could increase production from the land by his own efforts.

f)The
Company officials ultimately discovered that the zamindars were not interested
in investment for improvement of the land.

g)It
was also discovered that the revenue which had been fixed was so high that the
zamindars found it difficult to pay. Also the peasants were in distress as they
found the system extremely oppressive.

So,
the ‘Permanent Settlement’ system was not successful as expected.

Question.4: How
was the Mahalwari System different from the Permanent Settlement?

Solution:

Mahalwari
System

Permanent
System

1.This
system was devised by Holt Mackenzie which came into effect in 1822 in the
North West provinces of Bengal Presidency.

2.The
revenue was not fixed and the Government could increase the same whenever it
was in need of money to meet its expenses of administration.

3.The
estimated revenue of each plot within a village was added up to calculate the
revenue that each mahal (village) had to pay.

4.The
charge of collecting the revenue and paying it to the Company was given to
the village headman. Thus the ‘village’ and the ‘village headman’ would
benefit since there was no middleman between the British and the village
headman.

5.The
village headmen had a scope to negotiate with the Company if they were unable
to pay the revenue fro some reason and also continued to cultivate the land.

1.This
system was devised by Lord Cornwallis and came into effect in 1793.

2.The
revenue to be paid was fixed and could not be increased in future.

3.The
revenue to be paid by zamindars was once fixed by the Company which was
already very high.

4.The
zamindars had to pay his revenue rigidly on the due date every year, even if
the crop had failed for some reason. But then the zamindars would also
benefit if he could increase production from the land by his own efforts.

5.If
the zamindars were unable to pay the revenue their lands were auctioned by
the Company. Also the cultivator’s right on the land, which he had cultivated
for generations, was insecure.

Question.5: Give
two problems which arose with the New Munro System of Fixing Revenue.

Solution: Within a few years after the new
Munro System of fixing revenue was introduced it was clear that all was not
well with them. The Company revenue officials fixed too high a revenue demand,
driven by the desire to increase the income from the land.

Peasants
were unable to pay ryots, fled the countryside and the villages became deserted
in many regions.

The
optimistic officials imagined that the Munro system would transform the
peasants into rich enterprising farmers, what happened was just reverse.

Question.6: Why were ryots reluctant to grow indigo?

Solution: The ryots were reluctant to grow
indigo because of the following reasons:

a)The
indigo growing system was intensely oppressive.

b)Under
the ‘Ryoti system’ the planters forced the ryots or a village headman to sign a
contract of agreements. Those who signed the contract got cash advances as
loans from the planters to produce indigo.

c)As
per this agreement the ryot had to produce indigo on at least 25% of the area
under his holding and also to supply the indigo to planter only from whom he
had taken loan.

d)The
price they got for the indigo from these planters was very low than the market.
As a result the ryot had to take a new loan and thus the cycle of loans never
ended.

e)The
ryots who were initially tempted by the loans soon realized how harsh the
system was. They had to borrow again and again to meet their needs and could
never free themselves and ended up like a bonded labour.

f)The
planters also insisted the cultivators or ryots to cultivate indigo on the most
fertile soils of their area in which they preferred to grow rice. Because of
its deep routes cultivating indigo exhausted the soil rapidly and rendered the
soil unfertile for rice cultivation.

Because of these harsh reasons, in March 1859
thousands of ryots in Bengal refused to grow indigo.

Question.7: What were the circumstances which led to the
eventual collapse of indigo production in Bengal?

Solution: Because of the highly oppressive
system, in March 1859, thousands of ryots in Bengal refused to grow indigo which
ultimately took the shape of a rebellion. They got the support of the local
zamindars and village headman in their rebellion against the planters. As the
rebellion spread they refused to pay rents to the planters, attacked indigo
factories and fought with the lathiyals kept by planters. After the revolt of
1857 the British Government was worried about the possibility of another
popular rebellion in the indigo districts. In Barasat (near Kolkata), the
magistrate Ashley Eden issued a notice stating that the ryots would not be
compelled to accept indigo contracts and even Queen Victoria had declared that
indigo need not be sown. An Indigo Commission was set up to enquire into the
system of indigo production. The Commission held the planters guilty and criticized
them for the oppressive methods they used with indigo cultivators. It further
declared that the indigo production was not profitable for ryots. So the
Commission said the ryots to fulfill the existing contracts and they could
refuse to produce indigo in future.

Now
the ryots became free and were not compelled to produce indigo. This had led to
the fall in indigo production in Bengal.